This invention relates generally to the communication over a computer network, and more particularly to the viewing of an interface screen generated according to a network interface description document, such as a Web page for a World Wide Web site on the Internet.
Since its advent in 1992, the World Wide Web on the Internet has made fundamental impacts on the ways information is presented, searched, and exchanged over electronic networks. Tens of thousands of private, government, and commercial Web sites have been set up, and millions of viewers connect to the World Wide Web daily to gather or exchange information.
The viewer interface presented by a Web site is defined in one or more interface description documents provided by the Web site. Such interface description documents are commonly called xe2x80x9cWeb pagesxe2x80x9d and are typically written in the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). Each Web page identifies the contents and form of the interface presentation, and often provides hyperlinks to other information resources. When the Web site is accessed by a viewer, the Web page is transmitted to the viewer""s computer. A tool commonly called a xe2x80x9cWeb browserxe2x80x9d on the viewer""s computer reads the Web page and displays the information provided by the Web site in a controlled form according to the descriptions in the Web page.
Many Web pages use graphics to enhance the effectiveness of the viewer interface and to make the interface presentation more visually appealing. The graphic elements of a Web page may include, for example, graphic images and graphic control features such as buttons, input boxes, etc. The graphic images used by a Web page are typically stored in separate image files in one of several commonly used graphic file formats, such as GIF and JPEG. The graphic files are transmitted to the Web browser on the viewer""s computer, which displays the images in a format compatible with the video display of the viewer""s computer.
The use of graphics can have a tremendous impact on the viewer""s perception of the information provided by the Web site. Effective use of graphics allows a Web site to become more attractive to viewers to gain a competitive edge over other Web sites that offer similar information or services. It is therefore desirable to be able to display graphic elements of a Web page in interesting ways to enhance the visual appeal of the Web page.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a method and system for viewing a network interface description document, such as a Web page, that displays a transition between a first graphic element and a second graphic element identified by the interface description document. The interface description document is read by a browser on the viewer""s computer. The browser determines the transparency of the pixels of the first and second graphic elements to allow proper display of the graphic elements over a background. To start the transition, a display image which is displayed for viewing is initialized to contain the first graphic element. The transition takes place over multiple frames. For each frame, selected pixels of the display image are substituted by corresponding pixels of the second graphic element. The pixel substitutions continues over the multiple frames until the transition of the display image to contain the second graphic element is complete.
The advantages of the invention will become apparent with reference to the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawings.